Drones put 'wow' factor into aerial footage of Pearl Mist cruise ship

Monday

Aug 18, 2014 at 6:00 PM

By Brian.VanOchten@hollandsentinel.com(616) 546-4279It was neither a bird nor a plane buzzing overhead while capturing stunning aerial footage of the Pearl Mist cruise ship during its first two voyages into the port of Holland late last month.It was a pair of drones operated by a Holland-based business.HawkEye Tours LLC sent up two small drones to film the 355-foot-long Pearl Mist as it entered the channel separating Lake Michigan from Lake Macatawa and departed beyond Big Red Lighthouse as part of its maiden voyage July 29 and return trip July 31.“It’s pretty amazing the quality you can get,” said Jeff Lane, co-owner of HawkEye Tours, who used a pair of two-foot-diameter orbs equipped with high-definition cameras to film the ship. “We can get where the helicopter can’t get.”The drones, piloted by remote control, are able to navigate freely around the ship from safe, but close, distances, to shoot high-quality video that helicopter crews cannot match.The drones are powered by rechargeable batteries lasting up to 25 minutes each.Lane said HawkEye Tours, which has been operating for more than three years, films ships such as the Pearl Mist — as well as yachts, sailboats and other watercraft — and sells footage to the cruise lines. His company does it for a fraction of the cost of a hired helicopter.He also shoots aerial footage of home for online real-estate listings, farms, industrial complexes and family vacations. The typical cost ranges from $500 on up, depending on a variety of factors.“A lot of stuff, we shoot on spec and sell it back to people,” Lane said. “A lot of them just can’t visualize what it is we do and how we do it, but then they see it and say, ‘I want that.’“It’s definitely the ‘wow’ factor.”Holland Area Visitors Bureau Executive Director Sally Laukitis was so impressed with Lane’s footage, she purchased a still image of the Pearl Mist passing Big Red to be used in a postcard.“We ordered 1,400 postcards and we’re handing 1,300 of them out to passengers as a memento. We’re selling 100 of them in our office for 30 cents apiece while they last,” Laukitis said.She also bought a 16-by-20 print of the postcard shot for display in the downtown office at 78 E. Eighth St.The Pearl Mist docked for a third time Monday morning at Verplank Dock Co., 233 Kollen Park Drive. It is set to drop anchor Thursday morning shortly after 6 a.m. on another return trip.“Every time it comes in, we’ll shoot it,” Lane said of the largest cruise ship ever to enter Lake Macatawa. “I think it’s a great experience for people to come into Holland. It’s quite a unique spot for tourists.”You can reach HawkEye Tours by sending an email to hawkeyetours@gmail.com.View the YouTube video at http://bit.ly/1BuxnxB.— Follow this reporter on Twitter @BizHolland